June 1, 2023

Region 4

Multilingual Learner Leadership Network (MLLN) Newsletter

Summer is soon upon us! Thank you for your dedication and thoughtfulness this year in creating equitable, assets-based programs and supports for our multilingual learners and families in our region. We hope that our MLLN Newsletter has been a helpful companion on the journey, bringing you the latest updates, opportunities, and resources. Many of you will be taking a much-needed and well-deserved break in the upcoming weeks to decompress and re-energize. Our MLLN Newsletter too, will be taking a two-month hiatus after this issue. The biweekly newsletter will resume early August. If you have any suggestions or questions, please email us at MLLN@cccoe.k12.ca.us. We look forward to connecting with you again soon. In the meantime, enjoy the sunny days of summer!

Important Updates

ELPAC Updates

Initial ELPAC and Initial Alternate ELPAC

With the expiration of the U.S. Code Title 42, LEAs have reported an influx of newly enrolled students. There is concern about testing students whose primary language is a language other than English as determined by the home language survey before the end of the ELPAC testing window. Please remember that the Initial ELPAC or Initial Alternate ELPAC must be administered within 30 calendar days after enrollment in a California public school. If the 30 calendar days exceeds the LEA's instructional calendar or May 31, 2023, the LEA may administer the Initial ELPAC when students return to school for the 2023–24 school year, in the next grade level. If the student completes the Initial ELPAC or Initial Alternate ELPAC after May 31, 2023, which is the last day of the summative testing window, then the student will not need to take the Summative ELPAC or Summative Alternate ELPAC in the 2022–23 administration.

Alternate Assessment Decision Making Worksheet

CDE has released the new Alternate Assessment Decision Making Worksheet. Designed to guide and support individualized education program (IEP) teams with a step-by-step process to determine whether a student is most appropriately assessed with an alternate assessment, this new Alternate Assessment Decision-Making Tool can be used by IEP teams to determine an individual student’s eligibility to participate exclusively in alternate assessments. This tool can also be used as documentation for the IEP process.

Transitional Kindergarten

Federal and state law requires LEAs to administer the ELPAC to all eligible TK students. Therefore, the CDE must continue to require LEAs to administer the ELPAC to all eligible TK students as required by law. This decision continues to support students’ rights to receive English learner (EL) programs and services if identified as an EL student. For 2023–24, the enrollment process for an LEA will not change. LEAs will continue to follow the same process for identifying and annually assessing EL students. It is only when a student is enrolled in TK, the TK grade level will be transformed into kindergarten during the nightly CALPADS feed to TOMS. These students will appear in TOMS as kindergarten but will have the TK indicator flag set to Y (Yes), which will allow LEAs to locally track their students through the various reports and downloadable student data files available in TOMS. CDE is continuing to determine the most appropriate path forward regarding English language proficiency assessment of this population of TK students and will keep you updated with any new information.

Biliteracy Pathways Recognitions

Participation forms are available on the Biliteracy Pathway Recognitions webpage. Once the forms are submitted, certificate templates will be sent via email. Although there is no deadline to submit the online participation forms, please submit the online form by 7/31/23 to be included in the published state data.

15% Threshold for Translation

The release of the DataQuest Enrollment Reports includes the Language Group Report. This report shows languages that make up 15% or more of a school’s enrollment at which the school is required by law to translated all documents for families in that language group. Running this report during the summer months to see if any school has a new language that reached the 15% threshold will allow LEAs ample time to prepare over the summer for any translations needed for enrollment and communication documents, budget for translation costs, and develop new processes and systems such that documents sent home are translated in time.

UPK DLL Identification Process

California has a new asset-based Dual Language Learner (DLL) identification process in state preschool programs (CSPP). As outlined by Management Bulletin (MB) 23-03, the process is designed to help state preschool teachers and administrators strengthen their work in supporting DLL children and their families. This process does not take the place of the Home Language Survey that families must complete upon a student’s first enrollment at a California public school in TK-12. Early Edge California has created a new video (with English and Spanish subtitles) to share about the process' simple 15-minute conversation called the Family Language and Interest Interview which:

• Collects information about a child's language background and needs

• Helps teachers build a relationship with families

• Helps parents better support their child’s language development at home

Anti-Bias Education Grant Program

The Request for Applications (RFA) for the Anti-Bias Education Grant Program will be re-released later this summer with the hopes of awarding the remaining funds and creating a second cohort of LEAs. Most Cohort 1 grantee award amounts were around $200,000 as listed on the funding results page. The Antibias Education Grant Program funds may be used for training and resources to prevent and address bias or prejudice toward any group of people. More detailed information can be found on this presentation and the grant webpage.

CSU Bilingual Authorization Programs

The California State University (CSU) Council on Plurilingual Educator Preparation (CPEP) is coordinating efforts of the CSU Bilingual Authorization Programs (BAPs) at different CSUs across the state. The Bilingual Authorization is an added authorization required by the CA Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) to teach in TK-12 bilingual programs in CA public schools. The BAPs are offered for multiple languages including Spanish, Mandarin, Korean, Khmer, Vietnamese, Hmong, and more. These online courses plus fieldwork are open to credential students and existing teachers who wish to obtain a bilingual authorization. Please visit their websites found on these flyers for more information.